Marissa Toogood, Mark Chambers and Alec James rehearse a scene from the Hippodrome Theatre's summer production of "The Great AmericanTrailer Park Christmas Musical" on Wednesday, May 21, in Gainesville.

Published: Friday, June 13, 2014 at 10:41 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, June 13, 2014 at 10:41 a.m.

It's the same old Armadillo Acres, only sparklier; it is Christmas, after all. Didn't you notice the detergent-bottle reindeer hung over Rufus' door? Or the half-decorated tree between his lot and Darlene's?

Or hear their songs of the season? “Twelve Days of Amnesia” or “Christmas is for Dummies”?

Yes, this is the time of year, as park leasing agent Betty likes to say, when the holiday lights in this old trailer park are so bright that “Starke can be seen from outer space.”

On the ground, plenty of people from many regional counties also are visiting this Southern-fried neighborhood at the center of “The Great American Trailer Park Musical,” the wild comedy now playing at the Hippodrome Theatre in downtown Gainesville.

Tens of thousands of theatergoers met Armadillo Acres' residents during the two summers the Hippodrome presented the “Great American Trailer Park Musical,” the original “Trailer Park” play. Hipp records show about 25,000 tickets were sold for 95 performances in a record-setting 12-week run in 2006; and nearly as many saw the play in 2009.

Which raises the question, can this type of success strike Starke's most-famous fictional trailer park a third time? With the opening of “The Great American Trailer Park Christmas Musical” a fortnight ago, we're poised to find out.

So far, “crowds have been great,” said Jessica Layne Hurov, the Hippodrome's managing director. So great, in fact, the theater announced this week that “Christmas Musical” is being held over to at least July 6.

***

While the three, ahem, ladies Betty, Lin and Pickles return as characters in “Christmas Musical,” only one actor from the prior two presentations is back: Hippodrome favorite, Mark Chambers.

Armadillo Acres, he said during a rehearsal break recently, is “like an old friend, it's like coming back to your time-share. You know what it's like and look forward to it.”

In the previous productions, Chambers played milquetoast toll-collector Norbert, torn between his agoraphobic wife of many years and the flashy woman who recently moved into the park. In this chapter, Norbert and his wife have since moved away.

Chambers, though, remains.

“It's nice that I came back as someone more successful in this one,” he said; the professional actor now the “slickish” fast-talking Jackie who owns a string of misogynistic pancake “breastaraunts” named Stacks. “He's written to be big and bold; in the script it says 'booming voice, larger than life.' ”

Hailing from Memphis, Chambers has been an actor “since I was 8,” he said, when he was one of 50 flying monkeys in a Memphis Children's Theater production of “The Wizard of Oz.” “It had 300 kids in it.”

But there's no small part, 'tis said in theater, and young Chambers was hooked. So for the next 45 years, he's jumped from stage to stage, production to production. “I've seen a lot of states, they all kind of blend together over the years,” he said.

“I'd always heard of the Hippodrome, it was a very prestigious place among regional actors,” Chambers said. Though he met Hipp artistic director Lauren Caldwell in Daytona Beach, it wasn't until 1994 when he first came to Gainesville; he auditioned for “The Sisters Rosensweig” and landed the role of Geoffrey.

He's been in a couple shows most seasons since, among them “A Tuna Christmas,” “The Rocky Horror Show,” “Macbeth,” “Hedwig and the Angry Inch,” “Alice” and “The Santaland Diaries.”

“Mark has got an imagination that's larger than the size of Texas,” Caldwell said. “He's wickedly funny. He's a very bold actor, a sort of caution-to-the-wind kind of guy.

“You get to know actors. You know their stretch. You don't have to worry about him, and Mark knows how to step into the shoes of a different character.” She said she immediately thought of Chambers for the Jackie role when she first read the libretto. “I thought Mark could wrap himself around that role.”

Chambers, meanwhile, said he was “thrilled they had a part for me. It's a smaller role, but I get to come back.”

Based in San Francisco, he said he always likes coming back to Gainesville.

“This is my favorite place to work,” he said. “I've been awfully lucky to work as much as I have, enough to sustain myself. You know, I've never been a waiter.

“It's a passion for me. I like the magic of telling the stories.”

***

While magical, or at least sparkly, “Christmas Musical” is more than a nostalgic stroll through an imaginary setting off U.S. 301. It's also an economic boost to the city at a time when Gainesville empties of its university crowd.

According to an Americans for the Arts study in 2010, everyone attending a “cultural event” such as a Hippodrome performance spends an average of $27 above the cost of their ticket.

“For example, when patrons attend a cultural event, they pay to park their car, eat dinner in a restaurant, shop in nearby stores and pay for babysitting services,” noted a news release about the study.

“And the farther away they come, the more they spend,” added Hurov.

Should “Christmas Musical” fill, say, 20,000 seats, that would be $500,000-plus pumped into businesses around the Hipp.

“There's a great impact when the Hipp does something,” said Andy Fass, chef and owner of Amelia's Italian restaurant in the Sun Center outside the Hipp. “We definitely see more business, people coming in to eat before or after a show. We love what they do.”

And out front, a few steps north on First Street, is Relish, a shop specializing in hamburgers. “It really affects our nighttime business,” said shift leader Lawrence Granger. “People come by before to get something to eat. And after, we're the first place they come to, to talk about the show they just saw.”

Katie Pascale, a greeter at Vellos Historic Brickstreet Grille a few steps farther north, agreed. “A show at the Hipp definitely helps business,” she said.

And it's not just the Hippodrome, said Russell Etling, Cultural Affairs interim manager for the city of Gainesville. “With all that happens with the university during the school year, I sometimes find cultural programs are able to break through and become more visible during the summer months.”

For instance, the Thomas Center Gallery he oversees will later this month open “About Face,” a series of 107 portraits he said is “the largest exhibit we've ever mounted. Just because it's summer doesn't mean people aren't interested.”

And they pump plenty of extra cash into the community.

“The nonprofit cultural sector kicks in an $85.5 million economic impact annually,” Etling said. “That's direct spending and re-spending, people going to restaurants, shopping. We also sustain over 2,300 jobs and generate over $7 million in local and state taxes.

“We try to make the point that as great as arts are for the soul, they're also good for the financial infrastructure of Gainesville/Alachua County.”

In other words, it's not just the Armadillo Acres' Christmas lights glittering over Gainesville this summer.

<p>It's the same old Armadillo Acres, only sparklier; it is Christmas, after all. Didn't you notice the detergent-bottle reindeer hung over Rufus' door? Or the half-decorated tree between his lot and Darlene's?</p><p>Or hear their songs of the season? “Twelve Days of Amnesia” or “Christmas is for Dummies”?</p><p>Yes, this is the time of year, as park leasing agent Betty likes to say, when the holiday lights in this old trailer park are so bright that “Starke can be seen from outer space.”</p><p>On the ground, plenty of people from many regional counties also are visiting this Southern-fried neighborhood at the center of “The Great American Trailer Park Musical,” the wild comedy now playing at the Hippodrome Theatre in downtown Gainesville.</p><p>Tens of thousands of theatergoers met Armadillo Acres' residents during the two summers the Hippodrome presented the “Great American Trailer Park Musical,” the original “Trailer Park” play. Hipp records show about 25,000 tickets were sold for 95 performances in a record-setting 12-week run in 2006; and nearly as many saw the play in 2009.</p><p>Which raises the question, can this type of success strike Starke's most-famous fictional trailer park a third time? With the opening of “The Great American Trailer Park Christmas Musical” a fortnight ago, we're poised to find out.</p><p>So far, “crowds have been great,” said Jessica Layne Hurov, the Hippodrome's managing director. So great, in fact, the theater announced this week that “Christmas Musical” is being held over to at least July 6.</p><p><center>***</center></p><p>While the three, ahem, ladies Betty, Lin and Pickles return as characters in “Christmas Musical,” only one actor from the prior two presentations is back: Hippodrome favorite, Mark Chambers.</p><p>Armadillo Acres, he said during a rehearsal break recently, is “like an old friend, it's like coming back to your time-share. You know what it's like and look forward to it.”</p><p>In the previous productions, Chambers played milquetoast toll-collector Norbert, torn between his agoraphobic wife of many years and the flashy woman who recently moved into the park. In this chapter, Norbert and his wife have since moved away.</p><p>Chambers, though, remains.</p><p>“It's nice that I came back as someone more successful in this one,” he said; the professional actor now the “slickish” fast-talking Jackie who owns a string of misogynistic pancake “breastaraunts” named Stacks. “He's written to be big and bold; in the script it says 'booming voice, larger than life.' ”</p><p>Hailing from Memphis, Chambers has been an actor “since I was 8,” he said, when he was one of 50 flying monkeys in a Memphis Children's Theater production of “The Wizard of Oz.” “It had 300 kids in it.”</p><p>But there's no small part, 'tis said in theater, and young Chambers was hooked. So for the next 45 years, he's jumped from stage to stage, production to production. “I've seen a lot of states, they all kind of blend together over the years,” he said.</p><p>“I'd always heard of the Hippodrome, it was a very prestigious place among regional actors,” Chambers said. Though he met Hipp artistic director Lauren Caldwell in Daytona Beach, it wasn't until 1994 when he first came to Gainesville; he auditioned for “The Sisters Rosensweig” and landed the role of Geoffrey.</p><p>He's been in a couple shows most seasons since, among them “A Tuna Christmas,” “The Rocky Horror Show,” “Macbeth,” “Hedwig and the Angry Inch,” “Alice” and “The Santaland Diaries.”</p><p>“Mark has got an imagination that's larger than the size of Texas,” Caldwell said. “He's wickedly funny. He's a very bold actor, a sort of caution-to-the-wind kind of guy.</p><p>“You get to know actors. You know their stretch. You don't have to worry about him, and Mark knows how to step into the shoes of a different character.” She said she immediately thought of Chambers for the Jackie role when she first read the libretto. “I thought Mark could wrap himself around that role.”</p><p>Chambers, meanwhile, said he was “thrilled they had a part for me. It's a smaller role, but I get to come back.”</p><p>Based in San Francisco, he said he always likes coming back to Gainesville.</p><p>“This is my favorite place to work,” he said. “I've been awfully lucky to work as much as I have, enough to sustain myself. You know, I've never been a waiter.</p><p>“It's a passion for me. I like the magic of telling the stories.”</p><p><center>***</center></p><p>While magical, or at least sparkly, “Christmas Musical” is more than a nostalgic stroll through an imaginary setting off U.S. 301. It's also an economic boost to the city at a time when Gainesville empties of its university crowd.</p><p>According to an Americans for the Arts study in 2010, everyone attending a “cultural event” such as a Hippodrome performance spends an average of $27 above the cost of their ticket.</p><p>“For example, when patrons attend a cultural event, they pay to park their car, eat dinner in a restaurant, shop in nearby stores and pay for babysitting services,” noted a news release about the study.</p><p>“And the farther away they come, the more they spend,” added Hurov.</p><p>Should “Christmas Musical” fill, say, 20,000 seats, that would be $500,000-plus pumped into businesses around the Hipp.</p><p>“There's a great impact when the Hipp does something,” said Andy Fass, chef and owner of Amelia's Italian restaurant in the Sun Center outside the Hipp. “We definitely see more business, people coming in to eat before or after a show. We love what they do.”</p><p>And out front, a few steps north on First Street, is Relish, a shop specializing in hamburgers. “It really affects our nighttime business,” said shift leader Lawrence Granger. “People come by before to get something to eat. And after, we're the first place they come to, to talk about the show they just saw.”</p><p>Katie Pascale, a greeter at Vellos Historic Brickstreet Grille a few steps farther north, agreed. “A show at the Hipp definitely helps business,” she said.</p><p>And it's not just the Hippodrome, said Russell Etling, Cultural Affairs interim manager for the city of Gainesville. “With all that happens with the university during the school year, I sometimes find cultural programs are able to break through and become more visible during the summer months.”</p><p>For instance, the Thomas Center Gallery he oversees will later this month open “About Face,” a series of 107 portraits he said is “the largest exhibit we've ever mounted. Just because it's summer doesn't mean people aren't interested.”</p><p>And they pump plenty of extra cash into the community.</p><p>“The nonprofit cultural sector kicks in an $85.5 million economic impact annually,” Etling said. “That's direct spending and re-spending, people going to restaurants, shopping. We also sustain over 2,300 jobs and generate over $7 million in local and state taxes.</p><p>“We try to make the point that as great as arts are for the soul, they're also good for the financial infrastructure of Gainesville/Alachua County.”</p><p>In other words, it's not just the Armadillo Acres' Christmas lights glittering over Gainesville this summer.</p><p><i>Contact Rick Allen at rick.allen@starbanner.com or 867-4154.</i></p>